First negative ad in 1st Congressional District race

The first negative mailer in the heavily-contested 1st Congressional District race hits Suzan DelBene, the front-running Democrat in dollars and endorsements, on her track record in business.

Progressive For Washington, formed June 25, sent out a $21,328 mailer describing DelBene as “part of the problem” for the middle-class because “nearly every business Suzan DelBene ran eventually failed.”

The treasurer of Progressive for Washington is listed on FEC reports as Jeremy Pemble, who has donated $1,500 personally or through his business, JLM Partners, to DelBene’s opponent, Laura Ruderman.

Pemble has not returned calls yet.

Liz Berry, Ruderman’s campaign manager, said they knew nothing about the mailer before it landed in Ruderman’s mailbox yesterday. Berry said she wouldn’t have a comment about the contents of the mailer until we “take a look,” adding, “We were just as surprised as everyone else. That’s all I can say for now.”

Darcy Burner’s campaign called to say they had nothing to do with the mailer.

I’ll be reporting out the veracity of the mailer later today, but it accurately notes that Nimble Technologies, which DelBene was CEO of, was bought at a loss. Of course, one of these “failed” businesses DelBene worked for was Microsoft, as a vice president.

But it’s interesting that the mailer goes at DelBene’s strength – her resume – and her wealth: “She made millions, workers lost their jobs.”

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Politics Northwest is the go-to blog for politics in our region. The blog explores national, state and local political news and issues. Reporters from Washington, D.C., to Seattle City Hall to the state capital in Olympia contribute. Editors are Richard Wagoner and Beth Kaiman.